Hello everybody! I am in, although I don't think I will be able to finish my entry.. At least I'm hoping to improve my skills as a modeler, rigger and animator! I'm planning to do a short animation about bullying and giving it some kind of twist.
Good luck everybody!!!

Another color study, this time for a different idea. A bunch of prisoners in a concentration camp (more specifically Gypsies in a Nazi camp) with some strange behaviour... I thought this would be more fitting to the theme, although WW2 themes have been done to exhaustion... need to find info on concentration camps, anybody have any idea? I'll check Wikipedia and buy myself a copy of Schindler's List! See ya!

Dmacb

07 July 2007, 09:12 AM

Hi DrFX!

Nice idea... a quite often forgotten population that also suffered the horrors of the concentration camps...

Thanks Joaquim! (mais um Tuga q tá cá!)
I'm planning to do the story not centered around the horrors of the Holocaust, but around the victims, their way of life and how they got by. It's a tricky subject I know... Another film to watch is probably "La Vita è Bella".

Here goes an attempt at a synopsis... This is probably more material than the mandatory 3 minutes or whatever, but as I had said, I don't think I'll finish this in time! (3 min x 24 frames per second = 4320 frames!!! ... x 15 optimistic minutes per frame for rendering = 45 rendering days!!! --> time to buy a renderfarm! LOL!)

Synopsis

In the prisoners chambers in the concentration camp, the prisoners gather for a strange activity… They perform Circus acts silently for each other, using makeshift props. This helps them live through their ordeal and train them for their escape

1st scene

Late evening,some clouds. Workers outside carrying clay, putting charcoal in ovens, etc. The horn sounds for curfew and the workers retreat to their chambers.

2nd scene

After dinner, the prisoners go to their beds, pretending to go to sleep, while the guards check with them to make sure they're asleep.

3rd scene

The prisoners quietly leave their beds one by one, blocking the windows with their sheets. One lights a candle while another stands guard at the door window and others set up a circus show

4th scene

The show begins. One man rolls out a few rounded stones and starts to juggle. Another throws makeshift knives around a volunteer. An illusionist makes objects disappear and reappear.

5th scene

Side plot: The prisoners "clap" silently with only their fingers. One particularly ill-looking one displays a big smile to one of the showmen, and lies back to rest. Upon hearing the alert, the showman says good night with a squeeze of the shoulder, but gets no answer. He discovers the ill man is dead and closes his eyes. His faint smile lingers. The showman covers his face with the blanket and stares pensive towards him.

6th scene

The show comes to an abrupt end when the German guard strides towards the prisoners' chambers. The prisoner standing vigil alerts the others with a closing gesture and the showmen quickly hide all the show's props. Everyone goes back to their beds, candles go out.

This is a new, simpler concept I came up with since the other one would require an extreme amount of time to complete - although I'm still planning to do it, I'll shelve it until I have a bit more experience and time than right now!
This is basically a short story of how a fisherman encounters a mermaid out on the open ocean and becomes enthralled by her beauty, not minding the consequences of his "strange behaviour". The mermaid just happens to be a bait for an extremely ugly anglerfish that came to the surface to look for prey! This should have a pretty basic script/storyboard describing the fisherman sailing, encountering the mermaid, embracing her and being dragged through the water while he discovers his fate. C'n'C welcome, as always!

Here's a first concept of the fisherman, a 20 min sketch showing basic features: weathered skin, beard, disheveled hair, warm clothes. I don't want him looking *too* intelligent either! I'll do a sketch of the mermaid next, and then of the rest of the anglerfish!
Hint: Go read about the sex life of the angler fish, now THAT is some strange behaviour!!!

Here's the mermaid's head. I want her to be real seductive and inoffensive looking, to hide the real danger she poses. I'll try not to make the characters too anatomically realistic, I want them to have a bit of a cartoony feel (think Frezzato - not Frazetta!). The hair will be red, of course! Just like Ariel...

DrFx

07 July 2007, 08:40 AM

I've come up with a basic script so I can proceed with the planning of the asset creation and animation.

Synopsis /

A fisherman is wandering about in the sea and ventures a bit too much into deep waters. Suddenly, a mermaid appears before him, singing to seduce him. He is hypnotized by her beauty and her voice, and tries to reach her as soon as he can. When she's within reach, the fisherman steps out of the boat and into her arms. She holds him and starts kissing him, but suddenly she carries him underwater. The fisherman then realizes that the mermaid was only the lure of a gigantic anglerfish. The huge fish ends up eating the unfortunate fisherman.

Script (WIP) for theStoryboard

[*alternate beginning if there is time*]

The fisherman's boat is set up with a drag net and sails across the open sea.

Seagull flies around the boat and lands on the sail.

The fisherman scares it away.

The boat comes across a scary looking reef, but the fisherman goes there because he wants to find more fish.

[/*alternate beginning*]

As the fisherman sails by a very eroded rock, some bubbles start appearing in a spot not far away from the boat.

Suddenly, a mermaid appears from the spot with the bubbles, much to the fisherman's surprise.

The fisherman drops what he was doing and stares fascinated at the mermaid.

The mermaid stares back at him and starts singing in a sweet voice.

The fisherman steers the boat toward the mermaid.

The mermaid extends her arms towards him.

He stands on his feet and steps out of the boat, reaching for the mermaid

They embrace and kiss, the mermaid's tail curls around the fisherman.

Suddenly, the mermaid drags the fisherman into the water.

The fisherman sees that the mermaid is just an extension of a giant angler fish and tries to struggle to free himself, but to no avail.

The angler fish opens his mouth to the horror of the fisherman.

The angler fish ends up eating him.

The fisherman's cap floats on the water and the boat is left unmanned.

DrFx

07 July 2007, 08:41 AM

And here's the lowdown on the assets:

Character

- Fisherman

- Mermaid

- Anglerfish

Props

- Other fish and debris

- Boat

- Nets, lunchbox and other props

Sets

- Sea

- Rocks and Sea Bottom

Rigs

- Fisherman

- Anglerfish

- Mermaid

oferkapota

07 July 2007, 09:46 AM

Hi DrFx, I really like your sketches. The story is really nice also. But I think it is quiet a difficult setting. I wish you good luck! What 3D package are you going to use?

I also thought about using concentration camps as a setting for a strange behviour animation, but decided to leave it, because no one in my family or my friends would agree to help me...

DrFx

07 July 2007, 10:19 AM

Thanks, oferkapota! I'm going to use Maya and Zbrush, as I plan on learning a bit about both.
I dropped the concentration camp idea more because of time concerns and because of the sensitive issue of the Holocaust. You, of course, must be getting more distress out of it because of living in Israel. Off topic, a friend of mine was there this week because of some singer's son's wedding! I think the father of the groom is a bit famous there :D

bstout

07 July 2007, 08:26 PM

liked teh first story, its moving and poignant, but i love teh comedy of teh mermaid as a lure.

SantoAnderson

07 July 2007, 09:41 PM

I really like the anglerfish concept. Her face doesn't seem too alluring to me. I'd go out and study a bunch of supermodels (this is why I love CG) and find a healthy medium. She seems cute, but in that girl next door kinda cute. But she's essentially the wart on a fish's nose, so she can't be THAT cute. :)

Well here's the concept of the (female) anglerfish, without the "mermaid" antenna. I wanted to give it a freakish look so I drew the lateral fins as if they were some proto-arms and legs, and of course this is one big fish! I think I'll tweak the proportions in the model to make it look better in the end.

DrFx

07 July 2007, 03:21 PM

Thanks, Bill Stout and Brian Anderson! The mermaid head is just a preliminary sketch I did just for the hell of drawing a pretty girl. I think later on I'll just grab some reference pics of Jessica Biel, Adriana Lima and Laetitia Casta! Or a Brazilian actress named Camila Pitanga...

jamwae

07 July 2007, 06:47 PM

Wow, this is a really great idea! I can't wait to see how it goes. I like the legs with fins for digits, very cool.

varma

07 July 2007, 03:01 PM

Very nice sketch, the Anglerfish, Would love to see it in 3d!
Keep going!

Dmacb

07 July 2007, 03:11 PM

Hi DrFx!

Very cool idea and sketch! Lovely mermaid... I think it's well worth the bite...

Keep up!

Dmacb

melkao

07 July 2007, 03:26 PM

Hey ...thats a cool idea...very fun...keep going!:thumbsup:

OreoJackson

07 July 2007, 05:26 PM

Nice idea, I'll be following this one ;)

DrFx

08 August 2007, 03:49 PM

Thanks for the kind comments, jamwae, varma, Dmacb, melkao and OreoJackson!
Sorry for the lack of updates, just been (still am) busy with Viz classes plus lack of internet connection at home, so I won't post anything until Friday! I finished a very basic storyboardand came to the conclusion that I'll have more or less 29 cuts. I did start modelling the fish, but since I'm a bit of a noob at rigging and animating, I'll have to do some small experiments, probably with some simple fish! Once I'm done with the classes and set up the internet at home, I'll post the stuff.

overcontrast

08 August 2007, 04:40 PM

hey nice drawings... but i think i saw some1 in this challange doing the exact same thing... please do some research.

Dmacb

08 August 2007, 09:09 PM

Hi Dr.Fx!

Where are you attending to Viz classes??? Good luck with the fish modelling and rigging... Hope to see more updates from you... (but I can't speak much, I haven't updated in some time now...)

Fica bem e boa sorte!

DrFx

08 August 2007, 08:10 AM

Overcontrast: Yikes!!! I had this idea some time ago, I swear I didn't take it from anyone here. I hardly have time to browse through all the entries, so I apologise if this is too similar to anyone's idea, although this is a recurrent theme in much fiction. I think I got inspired by the anglerfish scene in Finding Nemo.
DmacB: Obrigado! I'm giving Viz classes in Flag Lisbon. Not a very experienced instructor, but I hope my students are enjoying it! I surely am!

Dmacb

08 August 2007, 09:44 AM

Hi Dr.Fx!

I'm sure your students appreciate you. A guy doesn't need to know everything... it just has to be modest and know its limits and constantly try to overcome them... I wouldn't mind being a 3Ds Max instructor... in a couple of years...

Started modelling the mermaid's head. I'm a bit unsure about the edgeloops still as I'm trying to get away with as few as possible. She's going to have a few expressions such as:
- an inexpressive "bland" face
- a seductive smile
- singing

Here's the model for the anglerfish I'm doing simultaneously with the mermaid. I'm doing it as separate parts - fins, arms, head, body, etc. - to simplify the work, and in the end I'll put them all together. It's quite fun to model freaky stuff!

I modelled the ear separately, imported the model and bam!-she can hear you now! :) to model an entire ear in quads is a good exercise!

Dmacb

08 August 2007, 06:58 PM

He... I "h"ear you man! Modelling a ear is really a very good exercise... specially to your patiente! And detail... Very good ear!

:thumbsup:

DrFx

08 August 2007, 08:37 AM

Thanks, Dmacb!
Her temple still seems a bit lumpy, and the I'll have to try and rig the eyes too see if they'll work like this. On to further modelling, then I'll try and export the whole thing to ZBrush!

In my gung-ho excursion into the world of 3d animation I'm always taking one step forward and two steps back. This time I just thought that the scene would be too void with just an ocean plane for scenery, even though the "monster of the depths" anglerfish should be a deep waters fish. So a small scary island or reef would make a far more interesting setting for this - think Kong or the forbidden area of the Blue Lagoon... so here's a quick sketch thingie!
On a side note, I have a bit of turmoil going on in my personal life. My ex's mother is dying of cancer and shouldn't make it to the end of the year, unfortunately. Yesterday I discovered that a dear friend of mine had an edema (hemorragy) that was compressing her spinal cord at the bottom of the pyramide (neck -- 2/3 occlusion yikes!). I would like to dedicate this work I'm doing to them - one I know is going to pass away and the other who nearly did.
Thanks.

Here's the topology for the head: some pretty basic edgeloops around the major openings and along wrinkle lines. There are "only" 60 days left in this competition, so I don't think I'll be able to finish it. oh well.

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